Sabre of honour of Count Vauban-IMG 0736 0738-white

Jacques Anne Joseph Le Prestre de Vauban (10 March 1754, in

Dijon Dijon (, , ) (dated) * it, Digione * la, Diviō or * lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920. The earlies ...

– 20 April 1816) was a French general of the

Ancien Régime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for "ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" ** Virelai ancien ** Ancien Régime ** Ancien Régime in France ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for ...

. He took part in the American War of Independence, and later in the

Chouannerie The Chouannerie (from the Chouan brothers, two of its leaders) was a royalist uprising or counter-revolution in twelve of the western ''départements'' of France, particularly in the provinces of Brittany and Maine, against the First Repub ...

uprising against the Republic during the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted France against Britain, Austria, Prussia ...

. He was the grandson of Antoine Le Prestre de Vauban.himself Antoine was nephew to the military architect Vauban

Biography

Entering military service in 1770, he was Rochambeau's aide-de-camp during the American War of Independence and was sent back to France with the general's dispatches in 1782. He became colonel and second in command of the régiment d'Agenors, and shortly afterwards, the duc d'Orléans, whose chamberlain he was, made him colonel in command of the régiment d'infanterie that took his name and knight of the

order of Saint-Louis The Royal and Military Order of Saint Louis (french: Ordre Royal et Militaire de Saint-Louis) is a dynastic order of chivalry founded 5 April 1693 by King Louis XIV, named after Saint Louis (King Louis IX of France). It was intended as a rewar ...

on 13 June 1784. Like most other officer of his corps, he emigrated around the time of

Louis XVI Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was ...

's flight to Varennes, going to

Ath Ath (; nl, Aat, ; pcd, Ât; wa, Ate) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. The municipality consists of the following districts: Arbre, Ath, Bouvignies, Ghislenghien, Gibecq, Houtaing, ...

, then Koblenz, where the

comte d'Artois Charles X (born Charles Philippe, Count of Artois; 9 October 1757 – 6 November 1836) was King of France from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830. An uncle of the uncrowned Louis XVII and younger brother to reigning kings Louis XVI and Loui ...

made him his aide-de-camp. He accompanied him in this role during the campaign of 1792 and on his trip to Russia in 1793, where they were well received by Catherine II of Russia. He then went to England, and in spring 1795 joined the Quiberon expedition. Tasked by

Joseph-Geneviève de Puisaye Joseph-Geneviève, comte de Puisaye (6 March 1755 – 13 September 1827) was a minor French nobleman who fought as a counter-revolutionary during the French Revolution, leading two unsuccessful invasions from England. He later led a group of Fren ...

with commanding a unit of

Chouan Chouan ("the silent one", or "owl") is a French nickname. It was used as a nom de guerre by the Chouan brothers, most notably Jean Cottereau, better known as Jean Chouan, who led a major revolt in Bas-Maine against the French Revolution. Par ...

s charged with attacking the rear of the Republican army, he was prevented by the forces of Hoche and, tricked by false signals, forced to retreat. He fulfilled several different missions to the

Vendée Vendée (; br, Vande) is a department in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France, on the Atlantic coast. In 2019, it had a population of 685,442.

and the

île d'Yeu Île d'Yeu () or L'Île-d'Yeu, is an island and commune just off the Vendée coast of western France. The island's two harbors, Port-Joinville in the north and Port de la Meule to the south, in a rocky inlet of the southern granite coast, are fam ...

, with the comte d'Artois. Returning to London, he hastened to return to Russia but arrived there at the moment of Catherine's death, fell victim (like most French Royalists in Russia) to

Paul I Paul I may refer to: *Paul of Samosata (200–275), Bishop of Antioch * Paul I of Constantinople (died c. 350), Archbishop of Constantinople *Pope Paul I (700–767) *Paul I Šubić of Bribir (c. 1245–1312), Ban of Croatia and Lord of Bosnia *Pau ...

's changeability and was soon forced to leave. He returned to France and stayed for a time in Paris, with police consent, until he was arrested in 1806 and held prisoner for a long while in the

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

Notes, citations, and references

Notes Citations References *"Jacques Anne Joseph Le Prestre de Vauban", in Louis-Gabriel Michaud, ''Biographie universelle ancienne et moderne : histoire par ordre alphabétique de la vie publique et privée de tous les hommes avec la collaboration de plus de 300 savants et littérateurs français ou étrangers'', 2e édition, 1843–1865 {{DEFAULTSORT:Vauban 1754 births 1816 deaths Military personnel from Dijon French military personnel of the American Revolutionary War French generals French counter-revolutionaries Royalist insurgents during the French Revolution Knights of the Order of Saint Louis